Renovation Week
by SpringPkmn
Summary: Yearly renovations to Korrina's gym were a pain. Every year, the Kalos League would kick her out of her home for a week to mess with something that was fine the way it was. What made this year so different? Why was she so excited to be kicked out? Whatever the reason, it would surely make for an interesting week. Clemont x Korrina. Oneshot.


Saturdays were usually Clemont's to sleep in. After a busy week at the gym, he used them to catch up on much needed sleep. Being a gym leader was exhausting work. In Clemont's case, the job that particular week included replacing the surface of the old battlefield, fixing the outdoor lighting system inside Prism Tower, and battling twenty challengers. The first thing that Clemont usually heard on Saturday mornings were the sounds of people's feet shuffling into the cafe downstairs for the lunchtime rush. This particular Saturday, however, he woke up to the sound of the doorbell.

"Coming," Clemont replied, yawning. The few seconds it took to walk down the stairs was enough time for Clemont to realize he was still in his underpants and without his glasses. "Give me a minute to change. I'll be right there."

Two minutes later, he opened the door dressed in his usual blue jumpsuit and glasses.

"Korrina? Come in, come in." Clemont was caught off guard by the blonde, ponytailed girl standing on his porch.

Clemont led Korrina down the hall to the dining room table and offered her a seat. "Want something to drink? Some tea, maybe?"

"Sure thing, Clemont," She replied cheerfully.

Looking into the kitchen cupboard, Clemont found the tea and some mugs.

While Clemont was busy gathering the cups and coasters, he made small talk with his guest. "What are you doing all the way out here? I thought you had work today."

"I have the week off, believe it or not," Korrina began to explain. "I can't live in my gym because the League is doing some renovations to it. So I'm staying the week in Lumiose City."

Surprised, Clemont asked, "Why Lumiose City?"

"Because I wanted to surprise you! We've both been busy with work, so we haven't been able to see each other as much as we would like."

Clemont turned on the stove and put a kettle full of water on top of it.

Clemont turned his head to face Korrina. Korrina, as Clemont found out, was the type of person who could not screw in a light bulb properly or change the channel on the television no matter how many times the concept was explained. They were on completely opposite sides of the spectrum in terms of their skill handling electronics. Clemont's troubled thoughts became evident on his face, which caught Korrina's eye. With an eyebrow raised, Korrina gave a questioning look at Clemont.

Waving his hand dismissively, Clemont replied as nonchalantly as he could. "I'm fine, I was just wondering about what would happen if you started messing with machines and robots with me. Wouldn't that be a disaster?"

Faking her offense, Korrina teased Clemont back in a playful tone. "Clemont, don't be so mean, your first time rollerskating was like that too. Give me a break!"

In a more serious tone, Clemont replied back. "No, I think it's more serious than that, Korrina. If you don't know what you're doing with dangerous machines, it could seriously hurt you." His voice wavered slightly. "That's why I don't even let you see my work until I'm done wrenching and checking it."

"How bad could it be?" Korrina replied, not understanding the danger posed by these powerful machines that Clemont tinkered with for a hobby.

Clemont answered her question in a grave tone. "If you mess something up, and you don't have any safety equipment on, you'll more than likely get killed."

"That bad?"

"Yeah."

The kettle gave off a whistling noise, and alerted Clemont to the fact that the water was boiled. Clemont stood up from his seat and went back into the kitchen to get the kettle. "Alright, I'll get the kettle. I'll be right back."

The moment Clemont left to get the kettle was the moment when Korrina realized that she was alone with Clemont in the house. Saturdays usually meant that his father and his sister were home. She would have to ask Clemont about that when he came back with the kettle.

Clemont emerged from the kitchen again with the kettle in his hand. Clemont carefully poured the boiling water into Korrina's mug. When it was filled, he continued pouring the water into his own mug.

"Hey, Clemont? Where is the rest of your family? Aren't they usually home on Saturday?"

"My family just left for vacation yesterday. They took two weeks off in Sunyshore City. Man, I wish I was at the beach!"

As Clemont finished his explanation, Korrina's phone rang. "Excuse me, Clemont. I have to take this call. I'm waiting to see if they have a room for me at the pokémon center."

Korrina put the phone up to her ear. "Hello?" she answered. The voice on the line responded unfavorably.

"What do you mean you don't have any rooms? How can the biggest pokémon center in Kalos not have any rooms?"

A gentle, feminine voice on the other side of the line was overheard faintly by Clemont. "Sorry ma'am, there's nothing we can do about it. I'll call you if we have any rooms available." The voice on the line suddenly cut out.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you something. There's always a huge cultural festival in Lumiose City at this time of the year. I forgot to tell you that every hotel and pokémon center in town was fully booked."

Clemont's reminder caused Korrina to remember that his family was still out. The fact that they were on a trip gave her a brilliant idea. "Hey Clemont, can I stay the week here?"

The thought of Korrina and him alone in the house together caused Clemont to almost spit out his tea. Him? Korrina? In the same house? What was she thinking? Wasn't she being a bit too suggestive? After a few seconds of thinking, he choked out his reply. "U-Um, are you okay with the fact that we'll be alone for a week? I have work, you know. Won't you be lonely in the house by yourself?"

Korrina smacked Clemont gently on the backside of his head. "Clemont, have you forgotten where you live? It's Lumiose City, for crying out loud! There's tons of things to do here. I won't stay in the house all day, I promise."

Clemont realized that it wasn't a good idea to stay in the house. "We can't stay here, though."

Korrina questioned why. "Why not?"

Clemont whispered softly in her ear, "I don't think my dad will like it too much if I have a girl stay over here."

Blushing at what Clemont was implying, Korrina quickly agreed to stay somewhere else with him. "Then where are we gonna stay, Clemont?"

Rubbing her head and teasing her a little, Clemont echoed Korrina's words. "Korrina, have you forgotten where you're staying? It's Lumiose City. Have you forgotten that I own Prism Tower and can live there if I want to? You already promised you wouldn't stay in the house, didn't you?"

"Okay, lead the way, Clemont!" Korrina commanded, satisfied by his answer.

"Let's finish our drinks before we go."

After a few more sips of tea, the mugs were put into the kitchen sink and they were out the door.

A couple of blocks down South Boulevard later, Clemont noticed Korrina with an uneasy look on her face. Was she scared to be seen together with Clemont? Was she hiding something? Or was she just hungry? He could never quite tell. Deciding to not ask her for now seemed like the best course of action. It was possible to ask her later, after all.

Korrina stared at Clemont's hand fondly. In the late morning light, the scars and burns from working on robots, electronics, and potentially explosive devices for virtually all his life had a sharper edge to them. To Korrina, this feature about his hands were what physically drew her to him. In a way, his hands were highly similar to hers. All of those falls while rollerskating and strength training without gloves had taken their heavy tolls on her hands. Was it any wonder why she chose to wear gloves in public?

To Korrina's surprise, Clemont took her hand. "I saw you staring at my hand, so I guessed that you wanted to hold hands."

This suggestion came as a shock to Korrina. "I really wanted to ask you, but..."

Korrina let go of Clemont's hand and took off her gloves to show him what she meant. Clemont couldn't care less. What position was he in to criticize hands? His hands were in an even worse condition. "Korrina, I don't care about things like that. I like you for who you are. In fact, I love your hands. As long as you hands are yours, I'll always love them. After all, they make you who you are."

Korrina gasped and put her hand over her mouth. "Clemont..."

"Is that all?" Clemont asked.

Korrina hastily nodded in response.

They started again towards Prism Tower, this time holding hands.


End file.
